Healthier Easy Lasagna

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Healthier Easy Lasagna
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Healthier Easy Lasagna

Recipe by Christina Vassiliou HarveyCourse: DinnerCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

45

minutes
Cooking time

40

minutes
15 minutes

With the right seasonings, you won’t miss the ground beef. You can use any tpe of ground meat, though. I also used fat-free cheeses to make it healthier. This recipe is a great make ahead recipe. I make the meat sauce in advance. Oven-ready lasagna noodles are a great time saver. You can assemble your cheese mixture ahead, but wait until the night of to assemble your lasagna. Bake for a quick after-work meal. I utilize that baking time to help the kids with their homework, and then their reward is their favorite lasagna.

Ingredients

  • 1.5 pounds of ground turkey or chicken, preferred 2% or less fat, but you can use any type of ground meat

  • 1 onion, chopped

  • (Optional) 1 bell pepper, chopped

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 1 = 14 oz. can of stewed tomatoes with seasonings

  • 1 – 14 oz can of pureed tomatoes

  • 1 TBS Italian seasoning (reserve half for your sauce, and half for your cheese mixture)

  • 14 oz. of fat-free riccotta

  • 1 cup of fat-free mozzarella, shredded

  • 2 TBS parmesan cheese

  • Oven-ready lasagna noodles

  • Salt and pepper

  • Non-stick cooking spray

Directions

  • Meat Sauce Instructions
  • Chop your vegetables.
  • Begin to saute your vegetables in non-stick cooking spray in your sauce pot on low heat. Sweat down until softened.
  • Add the garlic and cook for another minute on low.
  • Add the ground meat to brown on medium heat.
  • Depending on the fat content of your meat, drain any excess oil.
  • Add 1/2 TBS of Italian seasonings, salt, and pepper.
  • Add the stewed and pureed tomatoes, chopping any large pieces with the back of your wooden spoon.
  • Turn heat to low and let simmer for about 20 minutes.
  • Cheese Mixture
  • Combine ricotta, mozzerella, 1/2 TBS of Italian seasonings, salt, and pepper.
  • Add 1 TBS of parmesan cheese.
  • Assembling your lasagna
  • Preheat oven to 375.
  • In lasagna pan, add a layer of meat sauce.
  • Add a layer of oven-ready noodles. You do not need them to overlap as they will expand during the baking process.
  • Add another layer of sauce.
  • Add a layer of cheese mixture.
  • Then add the lasagna noodles. I usually have three layers of noodles. End with a layer of sauce. Then sprinkle on the remaining 1 TBS of parmesan cheese.
  • Cover with foil. Bake for 35 minutes.
  • Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.
  • Let rest for 15 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!

Notes

  • You can use beef to make this recipe. I have used 96% lean beef to make the beef version healthier. You can also use a meatloaf mix of meat (pork, beef, veal).
  • One time, when my daughter was really craving lasagna but I did not have ground meat, I took frozen meatballs from the freezer, defrosted them, and then cut them in small pieces. I added them to a can of tomato sauce for the sauce layer. She enjoyed it, and it took way less time than this make ahead version. But it was not as healthy as the ground turkey version.